


You'll Be Fine, You Honeycomb

by DroppedAllTheseOreos



Series: Gardening 101: Caring for Your Geckophite [2]
Category: Kamen Rider Ex-Aid
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Gardens & Gardening, M/M, Sharing Body Heat, sort of hurt comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2020-12-19
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:54:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,946
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28169583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DroppedAllTheseOreos/pseuds/DroppedAllTheseOreos
Summary: Kiriya tries to set up a bee hotel in the winter. Unfortunately, most of the bees are hibernating, so beesiness isn't as buzzing as he would've hoped. Fortunately he still gets some patronage from his local gecko shapeshifter, sort of not really boyfriend
Relationships: Graphite/Kujou Kiriya
Series: Gardening 101: Caring for Your Geckophite [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2063631
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5
Collections: Oreos' Fanfic Gauntlets





	You'll Be Fine, You Honeycomb

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so the spark of inspiration for this one came from this video by [i did a thing](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0mpo0Y-89E) and then [MarineHaddock](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarineHaddock/pseuds/MarineHaddock) came to my rescue by showing me this [reddit post](https://www.reddit.com/r/Beekeeping/comments/k5c4mv/freeloading_geckos/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) and gave me what I needed to figure out where to take this thing.
> 
> Also title from Community Gardens by the Scary Jokes and Louie Zong!

Kiriya could feel the texture of tiny scales and ridges pressing through his shirt as Graphite rubbed up against his back. The gecko man walked back and forth, pressing against him like a cat until he was crouched next to the human's side with his tail curled casually around Kiriya's hips.

"What are you up to?" Graphite asked, then let his tongue loll out so he could take a few swipes at his eye.

"That's hot," Kiriya said out of habit more than anything, but it still pulled a slight smile out of him when Graphite started grumbling and turned away to finish cleaning the other eye. He didn't make as big a deal of it as he usually did, and maybe that was because Kiriya didn't push more into it.

"But seriously, I'm debating if this bee hotel will work or not." Kiriya laughed a little, not averting his gaze to meet Graphite's like he usually would. “Uncle made this ‘tool shed’ but it’s never seen any use since it’s more of a glorified closet.”

"Bee hotel?" Graphite asked as he turned to face Kiriya again, then followed his gaze to see what he was staring at.

It was a big wooden box, about Kiriya's height, with little feet at the bottom, and a door flung wide open to reveal shelves with stacks of bamboo of all different widths on the highest three.

"Yeah. The plants have been looking a bit sad, haven't they?" Kiriya said, finally turning to look at Graphite with a partial smile.

Graphite looked around at the garden, not really noticing much different, but he guessed some of the flowers looked a little droopier than usual. He shrugged when he met Kiriya's eyes again, and the human smiled.

"Maybe I'm just imagining it, but I thought they could do with some pollinator friends, y'know?"

Graphite shrugged again, "Wouldn't hurt. Except for me, maybe."

Kiriya's look turned betrayed and then threatening in an instant, "Don't eat the bees," He warned.

Graphite scoffed, smile clear in his tone, "What are you gonna do about it?"

Kiriya tensed, taking a few moments to think about it. He could feel Graphite's haughty smirk burning into the back of his neck as he stood to adjust the placement of some of the bamboo sticks. Graphite was quiet as he watched and waited for Kiriya's retort, and suddenly the human was struck with an idea.

"Fine then. You can go back to hunting without my help if you wanna be so self sustaining."

Graphite went silent and he grinned, turning around to see the shapeshifter's expression. His glare was downright venomous and Kiriya had to laugh. It was as close to winter as it could get in Okinawa, but it still made hunting more difficult for Graphite since he was so sluggish these days. They had a little arrangement going on until spring came, so the joke about going back on his word must've struck a bit deeper than Kiriya intended.

He went back over to Graphite, crouching in the grass next to him and catching him by the chin so he could look him in the eyes. "Hey, sorry. I wouldn't ditch out on you like that. Too far, yeah?"

Graphite huffed, but bumped his head against Kiriya's. "I can handle myself."

That was true, Graphite refused to rely on him entirely, not wanting to go soft; strangely intense for a gecko, Kiriya always thought they seemed so chill. But in exchange for his company, Kiriya promised to help him get through the winter and introduce him to new human foods. 

It was funny how the agreement sort of settled into a routine. Graphite mostly spent the morning in his gecko form, sunning himself, climbing trees and plants, and going on little adventures Kiriya saw the beginnings of until he lost sight of him in the grass or bushes. And at night, he'd sit with Kiriya as they caught each other up on their days. There were days like today, too. Where Graphite would just follow Kiriya around, riding on his shoulder as a gecko, or following close behind as a humanoid.

Graphite bumped their foreheads one more time before he was pulling away. Kiriya laughed when he saw the grumpy pout on the gecko's face but he was giving Kiriya a small smile with time.

They went about setting up the rest of the bee hotel together, rearranging the little sleeping holes and adding cut flowers for pops of color and more customer attraction value. Graphite even tested out one of the bigger bamboo sticks by going into his gecko form and squeezing into one. He looked so cute with his legs curled up underneath him and his little face all sleepy, as he mumbled, " 's warmer in here..." but Kiriya did his best to resist aww'ing at him to save his pride at least a little bit.

With the bee hotel a seeming success with it's first customer, even if he wasn't a bee, Kiriya declared it open for business.

* * *

Kiriya forgot that most wild bees weren't all that active in the winter, but that didn't stop him from making bee puns to torture Graphite. For now, his one and only customer continued to be the gecko, and Kiriya was okay with that. It gave them more time to improve the hotel since Graphite was spending more and more time in the bigger "rooms" when he was feeling cold and slow.

As the winter went on, Kiriya started to worry. The weather here felt much nicer than Tokyo, though it could still get a little nippy and he didn't go out without a jacket on. Definitely colder than he remembered as a kid, so maybe this was a weather anomaly. But Graphite was getting more sleepy and sluggish every day. Kiriya had quickly learned that even in his humanoid form, Graphite was still cold-blooded when he'd rub up against him and feel like Nico's chilly hands after her shift at the kakigori shop. The only thing stopping him from offering a place inside for Graphite was the way he could actually back up his big talk. Whenever Kiriya didn't believe he couldn't do something or needed help, Graphite would stubbornly go out and prove he could. So, Kiriya didn't exactly want to insult him accidentally since he was still learning the nuances of gecko spirit culture, or whatever Graphite was.

That actually had Kiriya curious. Whenever he'd ask, Graphite would reply that he was simply 'Graphite,' giving Kiriya the impression he might've been more than just a gecko with a neat party trick. After some particularly hard work in the garden dealing with stubborn weeds and running from a snake that found their way in, a dirt covered Kiriya paid the bee hotel a visit.

"Hey, Graphite, I wanna ask you about gecko stuff again," He said quietly as he peeked into the holes big enough for him to fit in.

When he figured out which room Graphite was staying in, his heart stopped. The gecko wasn't moving. And when Kiriya touched him, he was cold. Almost ice-cold. It seemed like he was barely breathing, as Kiriya watched him, throat clenching shut until Graphite's back rose with his next, slow intake of breath. Graphite's stupid lizard pride be damned, Kiriya gently wedged his fingers into the room to pick Graphite up and place him into his other hand. The gecko immediately nuzzled into his palm and he carefully rushed them into the house.

Once he got inside, he started panicking. He had no idea how to take care of a reptile, and if he ever needed to do anything, Graphite was there to direct him. Kiriya considered making a cup of tea and placing Graphite on a plate above it, but if hot ceramic could hurt a human, he had no idea what it would do to a little lizard body...

He shifted Graphite close to his chest, trying to provide as much body heat as possible until he stumbled into his room and locked onto the lamp. Reptile owners put lamps in their pet's tanks, right? That could work. He got a hand towel to create a little pet bed for Graphite then laid him inside with the lamp on. As he watched, the lamp slowly heated up, and when Kiriya gave him a little poke, he seemed a bit warmer and his breathing seemed more regular and even.

Kiriya kept a quiet watch over Graphite until the early hours of the morning. His worry consumed so much of his attention that he didn't even notice how much time had passed until sunlight started streaming through his window. He blearily squinted into the light, trying to figure out the time since his phone was still in the living room and probably dead. When he couldn't figure it out, he looked back at Graphite, who kept sleeping peacefully. His mouth was upturned in the familiar, content grin he made when he sunbathed, and Kiriya rested his head on his hands as he watched. Finally, some assurance that Graphite was getting warm. Keeping his eyes open was turning into a struggle.

When he opened them next, it was to a clawed hand shaking him awake, Graphite on all fours on the desk next to him. Kiriya didn't even think as he bolted up in his seat and pulled Graphite into a hug.

"You're okay," His voice trembled as he squeezed Graphite tighter.

"Of course," Graphite said, voice mumbled by his face being tucked into Kiriya's neck. His breath tickled, but Kiriya was already shaking, so the little shudder in response was barely noticeable.

"Of course," Kiriya nodded, finally backing up since Graphite didn't return the hug. "You were really cold when I found you in the hotel, and I got worried." He grinned, trying to play it off as not that bad.

"I would've been fine when things warmed up in the morning." Graphite put a claw on his shoulder.

Kiriya swallowed around a lump in his throat, "Still," he said, not caring the way his voice cracked, "Seems like it's colder than usual this year, so if you wanted to stay in the house with me for the rest of the winter..."

Graphite tilted his head, brow furrowing, and Kiriya looked away. He didn't want to hear Graphite reject him to his face after that.

"Like I said, I should be fine, but..." He sighed sharply, "I won't decline such a kind offer."

Kiriya beamed at him, but the look was cut short by Graphite hopping off the desk and grabbing him by the arm, "But you should rest first."

Couldn't argue with that. Kiriya let himself be handled until Graphite had him tucked in the room's futon. He sat himself right next to the futon, seemingly sitting guard over him, but he still looked a bit cold from the way he was trembling.

"Hey," Kiriya said, opening the blankets to him, "C'mon in. You can still guard me in here."

"Not as effectively—" Graphite protested, but Kiriya tugged on his arm.

"It's fine, I trust you." Graphite went still, letting his arm be pulled down to Kiriya's chest, "Now, get over here."

Graphite stared at him a bit more, tongue flicking out to re-wet his eyes. After a visible swallow, he finally went along and let himself get tucked in with Kiriya. "Comfy?"

Graphite nuzzled into his shoulder lightly, "Yes," He mumbled. "This is surprisingly nice."

"Mmhmm," Kiriya agreed, squeezing his eyes shut happily as he cuddled in closer, feeling warmer than ever as he drifted off with Graphite's careful watch over him.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks much for reading! I have a [writing Tumblr ](https://droppedalltheseoreos.tumblr.com/) if you'd like to drop by and say hi or something!


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